China's autonomous driving tech forges inroads into global markets

Asia News Network

10 hours ago

August 5, 2025
BEIJING – Commercial application of China's cutting-edge autonomous driving technology is spreading globally as Chinese enterprises speed up efforts to expand their presence in overseas markets and deploy robotaxi fleets.
Residents in some Middle East cities, for example, will be able to hail robotaxis developed by Chinese companies via ride-hailing apps on their mobile phones before year's end.
Utilizing the technology will help build safer, more efficient and convenient intelligent transport systems, industry experts said.
China is at the forefront of autonomous driving development, and Chinese companies have vast experience in a wide variety of road tests and operational scenarios — ranging from densely populated urban centers to suburban areas — which has laid the foundation for their overseas expansion, they said.
Traffic conditions and urban environments vary in different countries, and governments around the world are working to build road infrastructure and establish legislative and regulatory frameworks to enable the safe and stable operations of robotaxis.
'Chinese self-driving enterprises are adopting different strategies based on the different regional conditions of overseas destinations,' said Duan Yuwan, deputy director of the School of International Trade and Economics at the Central University of Finance and Economics.
'Southeast Asia and the Middle East have become the frontiers for Chinese firms' overseas expansion due to their open policies and clear application scenarios, while European countries pay more attention to the deployment and implementation of the Level 4, or highly autonomous driving technologies,' she said.
Apollo Go takes off
Tech heavyweight Baidu Inc has stepped up the pace of its global expansion.
The company recently signed a multi-year strategic partnership with United States-based ride-hailing service Uber Technologies to deploy thousands of its Apollo Go autonomous vehicles on Uber's platform. The agreement covers multiple markets outside the US and the Chinese mainland.
The collaboration focus is on increasing the supply of affordable and reliable ride-sharing options by bringing Baidu's autonomous vehicles to Uber's extensive network. The first deployments are expected in Asia and the Middle East later this year.
Robin Li, co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Baidu, said 2025 will be a pivotal year for the growth of its autonomous ride-hailing platform Apollo Go, with plans to expand fleet size and ride volume faster than ever.
'Looking ahead, we will deepen our presence in existing markets while strategically entering new ones, capturing broader growth opportunities worldwide,' Li said. He sees a clear path to profitability for robotaxis as hardware costs continue to come down, and the growth in operational scale results in greater efficiency.
Currently, Apollo Go deploys a fleet of more than 1,000 fully driverless vehicles globally. Its global footprint spans 15 cities, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
The company has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority to launch autonomous driving tests and services in the city. Apollo Go will deploy 100 fully autonomous vehicles in Dubai by the end of 2025, with plans to expand the fleet to no fewer than 1,000 by 2028, as the city aims to make 25 percent of all transportation trips autonomous by 2030.
It has also teamed up with Auto-Go, a UAE-based autonomous mobility solutions company, with the goal of deploying the largest fully driverless fleet in Abu Dhabi. Initial trials of dozens of autonomous vehicles will be conducted in select areas of the city, with phased expansion ahead of full commercial operations by 2026.
'China is taking the lead in the R&D and application of self-driving technology, and the accelerated expansion of Chinese self-driving companies abroad will propel the commercialization of the state-of-the-art technology on a global scale,' said Zhang Xiang, a visiting professor at the engineering department at Huanghe Science and Technology University.
Zhang said authorities in the Middle East and some European countries have a relatively open attitude toward autonomous driving and are promoting the testing and use of robotaxis thanks to technological advancements and cost reductions.
'Chinese self-driving enterprises have strong technical prowess and have accumulated extensive testing and operational experience in the domestic market, so they are eager to play a bigger role in the international autonomous driving sector by leveraging their technological advantages,' he said, adding there is an increasing demand for self-driving vehicles in overseas markets.
Emphasizing that ensuring the safety and stability of self-driving vehicles remains a top priority, Zhang called for efforts to improve testing and application scenarios overseas, continuously optimize algorithms, strengthen road infrastructure construction, and reduce the manufacturing costs of driverless vehicle components.
New frontiers
Chinese self-driving company Pony.ai is poised to increase its global robotaxi fleet to thousands of vehicles over the next two years, with 2025 earmarked as the first year of large-scale commercial deployment.
The company recently started road testing its robotaxis in Luxembourg in cooperation with Emile Weber, the country's leading mobility solutions provider, to deploy electric autonomous vehicles in Luxembourg, and accelerate robotaxi application in Europe.
James Peng, co-founder and CEO of Pony.ai, said the testing marks the beginning of collaboration, innovation, and the advancement of autonomous mobility in both Luxembourg and the continent.
Pony.ai announced in April that it had obtained a testing permit for Level 4 autonomous driving from Luxembourg authorities. The authorization expands its global testing footprint, building on existing permits in China, the United States, and South Korea.
The company earlier chose Luxembourg as its European hub for research, development, and the deployment of autonomous driving technology.
Autonomous driving is categorized from Level 0 to Level 5. The higher the level, the more intelligent the technology and the less the involvement of humans. Level 4 vehicles can intervene if there is a system failure and do not require human assistance in most circumstances. However, a manual override option is still available.
Earlier last month, Pony.ai inked a strategic partnership with the Roads and Transport Authority of Dubai, to integrate self-driving technology into Dubai's multi-modal transportation network.
Autonomous driving technology will be introduced in a multi-phase rollout, with supervised robotaxi trials set to launch this year, followed by fully driverless operations in 2026.
Founded in 2016, Pony.ai has amassed over 45 million kilometers in global autonomous testing, and offers fully driverless ride-hailing services in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangdong province's Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
In South Korea, the company has set up a joint venture with a local tech company and started road testing in Seoul. It is also looking to introduce robotaxis in Singapore by starting trials with a local transport operator.
The company established a strategic partnership with Uber in May. The first service is expected to be launched in a key Middle East market before deployment in other international markets.
Chinese self-driving startup WeRide is another company accelerating its global expansion, with the Middle East seen as a strategic priority for autonomous driving growth and innovation.
It is cooperating with Dubai authorities and Uber under an agreement, pilot operations of autonomous vehicles will commence later this year via the Uber app in Dubai. In the initial phase, the vehicles will operate with a safety driver on board, paving the way for the full-scale commercial rollout of driverless services in 2026.
In May, the company and Uber further expanded their partnership to roll out robotaxis in 15 additional major global cities over the next five years, including some in Europe. It has launched fully driverless robotaxi testing in Abu Dhabi, and other cities in the Middle East are being explored for testing.
The company is expanding into Saudi Arabia and has rolled out testing or deployment of its robotaxis in cities including Riyadh, setting the stage for commercial rollout and wider operations across the Middle East's largest economy.
WeRide's robotaxis support Saudi Arabia's push to develop a smart, sustainable transportation infrastructure for both residents and the rising influx of visitors.
Open to innovation
The scale of the global robotaxi market is expected to reach $45.7 billion by 2030, rapidly expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 91.8 percent from 2023 to 2030, data from research company MarketsandMarkets shows.
The growth of the robotaxi market is influenced by rising demand for ride-hailing services, high R&D investment and government focus on reducing emissions, infrastructure development, and growth of electric vehicles, according to the consultancy.
The need for robotaxis is also being fueled by the growing emphasis on sustainability, requirements for effective urban transit, and increased safety as a result of the abolition of human mistakes, it added.
At present, governments around the world are continuously introducing favorable policies to support the development of autonomous driving technology — including test permits and infrastructure construction — which is conducive to accelerating the application and popularization of the technology, according to WeRide.
Zhu Keli, founding director of the China Institute of New Economy, said the open, innovative environment and supportive policy measures for autonomous driving technology in some countries, especially the UAE and Luxembourg, provide Chinese self-driving companies with ideal testing sites and a broad development space.
'Their accelerated global expansion will bolster the maturity of autonomous driving technology, propel the deeper integration of global industrial chains, optimize resource allocation and inject fresh impetus into the development of the self-driving sector worldwide,' Zhu said.
The accelerated international push of Chinese self-driving companies is inevitable in the face of increasingly fierce competition, said Duan from the School of International Trade and Economics at the Central University of Finance and Economics.
By cooperating with leading overseas companies, they can receive funding and policy support abroad and enhance their competitiveness in the global intelligent automotive sector. This will in turn drive the development of domestic companies involved in the autonomous driving industrial chain, she added. 'Self-driving technology is expected to become an important field for China to share its development dividends with the world,' Duan said.
Market consulting firm McKinsey& Company has forecast that China will become the world's largest market for self-driving vehicles, with revenue from such vehicles and mobility services exceeding $500 billion by 2030.
China has caught up with the US in developing autonomous driving, said Lyu Jinghong, an intelligent mobility analyst at research company BloombergNEF.
Lyu said ongoing testing on public roads, regulatory backing and cost reductions in autonomous vehicle manufacturing, will help accelerate the deployment and commercialization of self-driving cars.
However, Chinese self-driving companies' greater presence abroad may encounter some challenges, such as differences in culture, laws and regulations, she said. Lyu called for greater efforts to conduct testing based on different road conditions abroad, and improving knowledge about the usage habits of local consumers, as well as strengthening compliance and personal privacy protection.
Li Xinbo, an automotive industry analyst at China Auto Information Technology (Tianjin) Co, said as the operating costs and compliance risks in overseas markets are relatively high, Chinese enterprises need to carefully assess and formulate strategic plans, speed up localization efforts and launch services that cater to local requirements, when carrying forward their globalization push.